


The Angel of Hell's Kitchen

by ooTheJokeroo



Category: Daredevil (TV), The Punisher (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Hypothermia, Kidnapping, Panic Attacks, Prostitution, Slow Burn, Vigilantism, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 04:03:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17780219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ooTheJokeroo/pseuds/ooTheJokeroo
Summary: In a world where Nelson and Murdock never knew of Karen Page's case and she was wrongly convicted for the murder of the man she took home for the night only to wake up in his blood. Years later she was released from prison due to circumstantial evidence.With no family, friends, or money left in the world and with a reputation damaged she sells the only thing she has left. Which leads her into private rooms with powerful people in Hell's Kitchen. She starts piecing the puzzle together of what truly happened that night, and why she was the one to take the fall.Oh and she befriends a few vigilantes too along the way.





	1. Chapter 1

She was freezing. 

Karen didn’t know it was possible to feel this cold, but what else could you expect when you’re knocked unconscious and thrown in the back of a meat freezer. She’d been here for two days now after she was enticed into a white van with the driver waving money out the window.

She should have known better. 

Should have seen the signs that he was not the only one in the van, should have paid more attention to the tattoos on his neck and what they symbolized. But winters tough in Hell’s Kitchen, men are less enticed to brave the cold to meet her on the corner especially in recent weeks. 

She was hungry. 

Karen had been hungry for almost a week, but now all she could focus on was the cold and how it hurt to swallow. They kept dragging her out of the freezer and asking her about a man she got in a car with. They wanted to know where they went and who had been in the back seat. 

She told them she went into a lot of cars with a lot of men. 

She got a bruise shaped like a footprint on her stomach for that. 

Karen knew who they were talking about, and she didn’t owe that lawyer in the car anything really. She could care less about him, but he gave her information on Wilson Fisk. Sure, it was strange pillow talk, but she soaked up every piece of information he gave her. Karen knew two things for sure. One, this man was her only lead into figuring out why she was framed for murder all those years ago. Two, when these men got what they wanted they would kill her. She was only a hooker after all.

Karen rubbed at her arms in a feeble attempt to keep herself warm. They threw water on her this time before throwing her back in the freezer. She looked up at the meat hooks and knew she would probably end up attached to one of those in only a few hours. 

She’d been so stupid. 

Reckless. 

After prison she’d always been a little careless. 

Karen’s whole body was curled in on itself and she wasn’t sure how much more she could take. She was so hungry the thought of food was actually making her a little nauseous. Karen wasn’t sure she’d be able to keep anything down even if they gave her food. Luckily there wasn’t any meat in the freezer or else she feared she’d start tearing at it raw like an animal. She wanted to be strong. To show them they couldn’t break her. 

She was already broken. 

She had been for a long, long time. 

Before she woke up to a dead man in her apartment. Before prison. 

It will probably be over soon, she told herself. 

Either way she wouldn’t need the strength to keep going much longer. Either these men would kill her, starvation, or the cold. 

She wondered if they took other people into empty meat lockers like this to kill them. 

She wondered of they worked for Wilson Fisk.

Her head shot up when she heard the gunshots. All she had seen the men carrying were pistols, but now she heard rapid fire. She prayed to anyone that was listening that they wouldn’t all end up dead and she’d be left here to freeze. 

The door opened. 

A foot appeared in the doorway. 

There was some yelling and the foot disappeared only for a gun to slide in its place.  
She could hear fists hitting skin just outside the door and she dove for the gun. Grasping at it with frozen fingers she quickly adjusted her finger on the trigger and backed towards the wall.  
Someone was coming.  
“I have a gun,” Karen rasped. “I’ll shoot.”

When the man stepped in her fingers almost dropped the gun in shock.  
It was The Punisher. She’d seen him all over the news he had escaped police custody two weeks ago. He was the reason this winter had been especially hard with all the police patrolling around her corner. 

His eyebrows raised a little as he took the sight of her in. He had his hands raised, fingers spread. She was vaguely aware he was making small shushing noises in an attempt to calm her. 

“Take it easy ma’am,” he said, his voice low as if talking to a wounded, cornered animal.  
He took a few slow steps towards her, his hands up, fingers spread, and face open.  
Karen was always good at reading people, especially men. It made her job a lot more simple. She was usually able to tell what someone wanted from her before they asked. 

Frank Castle was no different. 

His eyes raked down her body, not admiring, but assessing. Assessing her injuries, her stance, her expression. He was reading her like an open book, the same as she was reading him. 

With every step he took she took two of her own back until her back was against the wall. She was afraid that her hands were shaking so much that even if she was going to shoot she’d miss. 

“You take another step… I swear to God…” She tried to say it with as much conviction as possible, but she knew he could never be afraid of someone like her. Not with her only wearing a bra and panties, her left eye almost swollen shut and bruises coloring her ribs and thighs. 

“Easy now, I won’t hurt you. You’re hurt pretty bad I want to help you.” His eyes glanced at her scars and where they were placed. She could read from his expression that he was trying to plan on what to say next so she wouldn’t blow his brains out. 

Luckily for him her hands were shaking to much and she was afraid she wouldn’t get a clear shot. 

After all The Punisher has come back to life twice now. Once after a shot to the head. So if she’s going to take a shot it has to count. 

“Hey listen,” He says it slowly making full eye contact with her keeping his face open and reassuring. 

She didn’t feel reassured. 

“Nothing comes for free right?” 

She just stared at him. 

“I need help figuring out some things with the men who kept you here. So maybe we can help each other, yeah? 

He took another small step towards her. 

“Don’t, don’t,” She rasped. It hurt her throat to speak but a few more steps and he could jump towards her and grab the only thing keeping him away from her. 

“Hey shh it’s ok I won’t hurt you. I only hurt bad people, right.” He said it as if he was speaking to a small child. 

“Don’t come fucking near me.” She tried to put as much venom in it as she could.

There was a sharp pop, pop, pop on the other side of the wall. 

She took her eyes off of him for a second. 

That was all he needed. 

She was on the ground, gun out of her hand, and breathe knocked out of her before she even knew what happened. 

His whole body covered hers. She tried struggling, but it was futile. 

He had the gun pointed it towards the door and shot the two men who tried to run in. 

“C’mon it’s not safe here.” With the lack of sleep and the hypothermia her brain was slow to catch up. He was no longer on top of her and had his hand outstretched to her. 

“Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you. That’s a promise.” 

She had always been good at reading men and knowing their intentions. 

She took his hand. 

***  
In a quick movement his coat was wrapped around her and he had her by the arm leading her out of the building. Pretty soon he was supporting most of her body weight with the last of the adrenaline in her system fading away. 

Her brain had really started to slow and before she knew it he had buckled her into the passenger seat of a car. With energy she didn’t even knew she had she weeped a little before passing out, vaguely aware of an image of white knuckles gripping a steering wheel. 

***

When Karen first became aware she felt blissfully warm. There was air blowing near her that was pure heat, and she was snuggled into thick blankets. She became a little disoriented when she realised no one was in the bed with her, and she was in a room that had heat. Karen started to panic a little forcing her eyes open. 

Karen was in an open space with a bed, a pullout couch, TV, kitchen, and a pullout table. 

And what looked like a full arsenal in the middle of the room.

And there was The Punisher cleaning a gun. Doing exactly what the rest of America probably pictured him to be doing right at this moment if they thought of him. 

Karen tried to sit up quickly, the rustle of blankets causing The Punishers eyes to snap towards her. Her eyes widened when he met her gaze. 

“You’re safe, I won’t hurt you.” 

She swung her legs to the side of the bed. The soreness of her midsection making her gasp. He quickly stood from his chair making it squeak slightly against the hardwood. The sound startled her even more. 

“Hey, hey.” He tried to settle her by saying it calmly. But she could hear the urgency in his tone. 

“You have bruised ribs I think, but you shouldn’t move your middle to much just in case they’re broken. I’m not a doctor.” 

The only reason she could tell she was having a panic attack was that the rapid inhale and exhale was making her chest seize in pain. She brought a hand to her chest and the pain made her panic more. Her tingling fingers shook a little against her chest. She could see in his eyes he was unsure how to proceed with her. His eyes seemed to reflect a debate within himself. 

He laid a knife on the table, and picked up the pieces of the gun he was cleaning and shoved them in the rest of the arsenal in the center of the room. 

“This knife is yours ok. I won’t hurt you, but I know sometimes words aren’t enough. I have some soup in the fridge I’ll heat up for you, and then we can talk. How’s that sound?” 

She eyed the knife on the table, and then she eyed him. She remembered how in a second she had the gun on him. She had the advantage and he was able to flip that on her so quickly. She slowly nodded towards him, and he retreated towards the kitchen. 

Once he had his back turned. She decided to attempt standing. She hadn’t eaten a full meal in a week, and just went through mild torture so she wasn’t sure if black spots would dance in her eyes. When she stood she got the black spots, but she felt pleased when they went a way and she made her way towards the table. She quickly grabbed the knife and put it in her lap. 

It was a small comfort. 

Even though he was The Punisher and he had survived so much so surely he would survive Karen Page, it comforted her knowing that however small she had something to defend herself with. She had a chance. 

Karen Page lost many things, but hope wasn’t one of them. 

At least she liked to tell herself that. 

She watched his back as he poured liquid into a pot on the stove, filled a glass of water and set it on the table in front of her. This time he avoided her eyes a little she noticed. 

“Don’t drink it to quickly, you might throw up. Just small sips for now, ok?”

She nodded and he went back to the stove. 

After she saw his slight nervousness, she relaxed a little bit. Karen noticed that she had a large T shirt on with a Metallica logo on it. She was tall for a girl, but the shirt still came down to her mid thighs. Her brain was still catching up to everything. She shivered a little, the warmth from the bed, and what she now realized was a space heater next to it leaving her body. 

The Punisher sat a bowl of soup in front of her. The clang of the bowl hitting the table making her body flinch and her eyes dart back to him. 

She shouldn’t be taking her eyes off of him she should remember that. 

His eyes glanced at the knife in her lap then back to her. 

“You’re a hooker.” He said bluntly no shame in his expression. 

She nodded, no shame in hers.

“You got in a car with Franklin Nelson two weeks ago.” 

She nodded again. 

“Ok. There’s just a few other things that would be helpful if you could clear up for me.” 

He stacked a few bills on top of the table. She noticed they were hundreds. 

“I know time is money. Eat your soup and then we can talk.”


	2. Exchange

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I added in Frank's point of view too just to see how I liked it. I know i'm not great with grammar this is just more for fun for me. Any constructive criticism is appreciated though!

She’s had men pay her to share a meal with them before, but none of those times was quite like this. She put the spoon back in the bowl when she was finished. Karen felt like her stomach would burst even after only having the broth. 

 

“You didn’t take me to a hospital.” She commented. He raised his eyebrows.

 

“Do you want to go to the hospital?”

 

“No. It’s just most people would call the police after finding a hooker locked in a meat cooler.” Her leg started to bounce and her eyes were darting around the room. Now that the fear was wearing off her natural jitteriness returned. He shook his head at her and snorted. 

 

“Well I’m not most people ma’am.” Karen almost snorted back at him for calling her “Ma’am. It probably wouldn’t be a good idea anyways for The Punisher to call the police to his own crime scene. Why he didn’t drop her off at a hospital though...

 

“No, I suppose The Punisher isn’t like most people.” It fell out of her mouth before she thought about how he might react to it. Her leg started bouncing faster, and she bit her lip hard enough to taste blood. 

 

“I mean…” She started. 

 

“My picture has been blasted on the news for weeks. I’d be shocked if you hadn’t recognized me.” 

 

“Do you live here?” She blurted out. Her eyes still darting around the room. She really needed to control her brain to mouth filter right now. 

 

“I have a lot of places around the city this is one of them.” Now he looked away from her. “Do you know who kidnapped you?” 

 

“Abducted you mean,” She responded. “I’d have to be underage to be kidnapped.” He started to tap his finger against his jeans. It was his trigger finger Karen noticed, and she could see he was beginning to lose his patience with her. 

 

“I don’t know who they were, but I might know who they worked for.” She offered. 

 

He nodded at her to continue. 

 

“I used to work for this place, Union Allied. It was a construction company. I was just a secretary, but I saw something I shouldn’t have and someone tried to have me killed because of it to keep the story short.” She said it a little more angry than she should have. 

 

“They killed the wrong person. I went to jail for his murder where more attempts were made on my life, so I was basically in solitary for a year for my protection. Until Fo-... Franklin Nelson got me out on circumstantial evidence.” She shrugged.

 

“Anyways that thing I saw that I shouldn’t have. I copied it on a flashdrive to show to my coworker to see what his thoughts were on it. When I got arrested after he was killed I still had the flashdrive on me, and when I got out they gave it back to me a long with everything else from that morning they arrested me. I don’t know why someone didn’t look at it and destroy it, but they didn’t.” 

 

“They underestimated you.” He shook his head. 

 

“I guess if you want to think of it like that.” She shrugged. “I gave him a copy of the flashdrive so he can look at it. I think someone saw me and that’s why they took me. They want to know what’s on it.” 

 

“What’s your name?” He asked. He had a similar curiosity in his eyes as a small child, and Karen wondered what the extent was of his brain injury. She remembers some of the doctors they invited on different news panels had said all different things. 

 

“Karen,” She whispered it slightly a little afraid to have The Punisher know her name. 

 

“Last name?” He questioned. 

 

“Page,” Now she whispered. If he was a client she would have told him her name was Katie. It was easy enough to remember, and if she started to say her real name by accident she could back track easily enough. Karen knew it was probably a bad idea to lie to The Punisher of all people though. Just the way he seemed to look into her made it even scarier to lie. 

 

“You can call me Frank ma’am.” He said more softly than she expected. 

 

“Well Frank, I think the hour is almost up.” She bit her lip. By his face she knew it was the wrong thing to say, but she wanted to see his reaction. She sagged a little with relief when he nodded slowly and stood. Karen thought he might force her to stay. You can’t have people running around Hell’s Kitchen knowing where The Punisher lives. 

 

“Alright I’ll take you home.” He moved to a cardboard box by the bed sifting through the contents. She stood.

 

“That’s alright, I can let myself out.” She stuffed the cash on the table into her bra while his back was turned. 

 

He tossed something black towards without looking, and she flinched so hard she almost fell over her own feet. 

 

“You can put those sweats on, and there’s a jacket on the hanger you can borrow. It’s 3am, in this shitty neighborhood, yeah I’ll drive you.” The way he said it she knew it wasn’t up for discussion. She pulled on the sweats and pulled the drawstrings as tight as she could. Karen still had to hold on to them or else they started to slowly slip down her legs. She started towards the door. 

 

“Jacket.” He pointed at the black fabric hanging by the door as he pulled on his own long black coat. She shrugged the too big jacket on. The material was a little rough against her skin, but it grounded her a little so she was grateful. 

 

“Ready?” He asked as he pulled open the door for her. 

 

***

 

She was beautiful that was undeniable. 

 

Frank didn’t consider himself shallow. Sure there were a few broads that turned his head over the years, but it was never anything compared to how he felt for Maria. She was average compared to the rest of the world, but to him she would always light up a room. 

 

Karen Page was different.

 

She didn’t light up the space with that bright, radiating light. His chest didn’t swell with pride and happiness when he looked at her, but there was still this awe he hadn’t felt in years. A little flutter in his chest. Her pale skin gave a soft glow against the darkness of the street. Her eyes seemed to glow too, so blue and bright it was almost inhuman. Embarrassingly, Frank realized he never offered her shoes or socks, or anything to protect her feet as she made her way to his car. He was still reeling from the guilt over recognizing another woman’s beauty. 

 

It wasn’t anything major.

 

Except this is the first time he’s felt any type of fluttering in his stomach since Maria. 

 

That terrified him a little.

 

But it wasn’t anything major. 

 

It turns out she was pretty familiar with this area as she seemed to mindlessly direct him down certain streets leading him into an even shittier part of the city if that was possible. 

 

“Ok, this is me.” She said and Frank put the car in park. He nearly grabbed her arm to keep her in the car. There was a man outside her building obviously on drugs loudly yelling to himself, and another crouched in the corner. Frank was unsure of whether he was passed out or not. She got out of the car as if this was perfectly normal. 

 

“She turned towards him quickly when the drivers side door opened. Frank almost wanted to chastise her for turning her back on the two men outside her building. She looked at him with her head tilted and brows furrowed. 

 

He couldn’t quite connect how someone like her could be somewhere like this.

 

The doctors said his mind was really, really screwed up after that day in the park though. 

 

“I’ll walk you up.” He gruffed out. His voice low. She huffed a little at him like she was offended he thought she couldn’t take care of herself. 

 

His knife was still gripped tightly in her hands. 

 

He knew she could take care of herself.

Frank just couldn’t drive away though. He wanted to know that she would be safe in her apartment if all these people really were out to kill her. He wanted to check the place out a little and make sure no one was around. 

 

When he explained that to her at her door her eyes widened a little and she nodded in understanding. 

 

“You know I'm a little surprised you’re letting me do this for you.” He admitted to her. “I for sure thought you were going to slam the door in my face and call the cops the second you could.” She snorted at him after he finished and gave him a weird look. 

 

“No, you don’t have to worry about that. I’m actually used to this kind of thing right now.” She laughed to herself a little bit. 

 

“What do you mean?” Frank asked.

 

“I just know someone that’s a little bit like you that’s all.” The way she said it he knew he would be getting no more answers from her tonight. 

 

“Alright goodnight ma’am.” He started towards the door. 

 

“Thank you Mr. Castle.” She answered. He turned and looked straight into those supernaturally lit blue eyes. 

 

“You can call me Frank ma’am,” and then he was closing the door behind him. 

 

As he walked down the steps he thought of the puzzle pieces he had been missing that she slid into place for him. Frank thought he might need to meet her again soon if he couldn’t figure the rest out himself. Especially because she knew way more than she was letting on. 

 

He respected it though. From the bare state of her apartment he could tell information was one of the only possessions she had. 

 

“Are you the Demon or the Devil,” The crackhead whispered towards him on his way out. Frank just glared at him. 

 

“Oh excuse me sir, you are neither. You… You can be… The hellhound. The dog fighter.” The man was giggling to himself. Frank’s shoulders just stiffened as he walked to his car. Ready to be out of this place. 

 

Frank put the car in reverse as quickly as possible and high tailed it out of there. He fished in his pocket for the burner phone he had for this week and speed dialed the second number. 

 

“What could you possibly need at ass o’ clock in the morning,” a hushed voice whispered to him. Frank winced he forgot about the time and that most people were asleep during these early morning hours. 

 

“Hey David, sorry to wake you. I need you to do me a huge favor and get me everything you can on a Karen Page in Hell’s Kitchen. She was arrested I think a few years ago for a murder then she was declared innocent and released. She’s tall, blond hair, blue eyes. That’s all I’ve got. Frank hoped it was enough. Karen Page sounded like a pretty generic name. Hopefully it wasn’t a fake. David yawned on the other end of the line. 

 

“I’ll tell you what I’ll get right on that. At a normal fucking hour, sound good?” David yawned again. 

 

“Yeah sounds good. Thanks for your help.” Frank hung up. 

 

When he crawled into bed he noticed her scent in the sheets. 

 

He tried not to think about it too much.


End file.
